Billiard-cue.



F. E. COOPER, H. W. TANEYHILL & G. K. PAGE. BILLIARD GUE.

APPLIGATION FILED APR. z, 1909.

1,018,082. Patented Feb. 20, 1912.

im mmm mum U NITED STATES -ATE OFFICE.

FRED E. COOPER, HARRY W. TANEYHILL, AND GEORGE K. PAGE, 0F PEORIA, ILLINOIS.

BILLIARD-CUE.

' Patented Feb. 20, 1912. Serial No. 487,551.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FRED E. COOPER, HARRY W. TANEYHILL, and GEORGE K. PAGE, citizens of the United States, residing at Peoria, in the count-y of Peoria and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Billiard-Cues; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention pertains to improvements in billiard cues and relates more particularly to improvements in billiard cue tips and the manner of attaching the same.

The invention has for its object to provide a different arrangement for securing the usual leather tip to the cue from those of which we are aware the means employed being such as to permit the tip to be forced into a seat therefor by pressure and retained by spreading or flaring into engagement with a recess in the holding means but from which it cannot withdraw or be removed in use.

Another object is to provide a tip for a billiard cue which will not require the use of cement or friction points to secure it in place.

Another object is to provide a tip for a billiard cue and a retainer for the same constructed and arranged so that the actual use of the cue in striking the billiard balls results in forcing its leather tip into its seat and by which it is prevented from unseating and by which also the more it is used the tighter it will be held in place.

Another object is to provide such a structure in a retaining means for the leather tip of a billiard cue that said means will not be injured or destroyed in removing a tip therefrom thus providing for a permanent receptacle for said tip.

In the accompanying drawings Figure l illustrates a portion of a billiard cue provided with our invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of a tip-retaining fer-` rule showing its connection with a part of a billiard cue.

tion of a part of the ferrule shown in Fig. 2 greatly enlarged to better show its peculiar internal form. Fig. 8 is an' elevation of a leather tip, and Fig. 4 shows a tip retaining ferrule in part section and the leather tip seated the ein A indicates the body of the cue which, as shown in Fig. 2, is preferably reduced in diameter to constitute a reduced extension B upon which is slipped a metal ferrule C whose outside diameter is equal to the diameter of the cue-body and whose surface is fiush with the surface of the cue. The ferrule is secured to the cue in any good manner as, for instance, by means of a pin D extending through both the ferrule and cue as shown in Fig. 2 and is provided at its outer end with a recess E. The surface of the metal within the recess E is undercut or recessed as at F so as to create an overhang or shoulder G and from the bottom of the undercut the metal is beveled inwardly and forms a constricted neck H and beneath this neck the metal is again undercut to form a second recess J. The ferrule is provided :with a wall K which rests upon the end of the cue, the recess J being adjacent to said wall.

In Fig. 3 the tip is shown and is preferably of leather and indicated at L in the other figures. Its top is of a round form and may be provided with a reduced stem M but it is not important to provide such reduced stem M since the tip may be of the same diameter throughout. However, in either case the diameter of the tip is substantially the same as the diameter of the recess E or a little larger if so desired and it is seated in the recess E with its lower end upon the wall K, and by pressure it is spread within the recess and made larger in diameter by such pressure so as to be forced in the recesses F and J beneath the constricted portions G and H respectively. By continual use in striking the billiard balls the leather is more and more compressed and forced more and more tightly into the recesses and it can only be with- Fig. 2a is a longitudinal secdrawn by grasping it with a suitable iinplement or by the use of some sharp instrument to cut it away this being done when the leather has become worn after long use. The leather can conform readily to the surface of the ferrule and especially if it is wet so as to make it more pliable. Vhether or not the tip is provided with a shoulder by reducing its diameter to form the stem M is immaterial since the leather in use will overlie the edge of the ferrule as shown in Fig. 4 and thereby protect the billiard balls from said edge. The tip never becomes loosened in the ferrule since the continued blows received by it in striking the billiard balls causes the leather to be tightly and firmly held. No cement is used since it is entirely unnecessary. Neither are friction points or other devices found necessary; these in fact being detrimental in practice.

The wall K of the ferrule could be dispensed with and the leather tip could bear directly upon the cue but it is preferable to use said wall since it provides a socket in which to firmly seat the cue so that the wood of the latter is better and more thor` oughly protected from possible injury.

As distinguished from other devices of this nature our ferrule C is not provided with threads into which the leather tip is to be screwed since .such structures have been found to be wholly unsuited for the needs of a cuev which is constantly receiving heavy blows as in striking heavy balls. That is to say, the points of the threads, which must be necessarily fine ones in order to have a sufficient number of them to take proper hold of the tip, have a shearing action on the leather, due to pressure in striking the ball, compressing` the leather resulting in soon stripping the threads on the leather formed by those of the ferrule. The tip thus very easily falls from the cue since there is nothing to hold it in place. Ours, however, is provided with the deep recesses or undercuts, of which there are but two and which are widely separated, so that there are no thin portions, as in a threaded tip, that can possibly shear off. rlfhe overhanging top fiange Gr and that at H extend inwardly also to such an extent that the leather when once seated can not draw out and as already stated the more the cue is used the more tightly and firmly the tip is heldthis being shown by long use of many of our cues. 1n addition to the above advantages and differences over the art, the ferrule C is broad at the top upon the flange Gr so that it will not cut the leather as results with one of the known devices; furthermore, by having a socket to receive the stick A, together with the wall K to rest upon the end of the latter, the ferrule will not be driven down upon the stick away from and to release the tip as results in the devices mentioned nor is there any danger of the tip-holder or ferrule being knocked off of the stick or splitting it as when said ferrule is fastened by means of a screw or other member extending into the end-grain of the wood. And it is at once evident that a ferrule that is.

firmly and permanently secured to the cue is preferable to a removable one since there is no possibility of the saine becoming loose or leaving said cue while in use and neither is there likely to be a rattle or vibration during such use. In addition, as distinguished from other devices in which the ferrule is removable and where said ferrule is reduced in diameter so as to be made to hold the tip, the said tip must in some cases be specially formed and in other cases the end of the ferrule are subject to damage by blows thereon and will very readily cut the leather resulting in short life both to the said ferrule and the tip. The tip also when greatly reduced in diameter at any one point, as occasioned by the older structures when used with detachable fer-rules, is likely to be severed at that point in use by its head tearing from its base portion.

It has been stated previously that when the leather tip is screwed into the ferrule the stripping of these threads is inevitable and added to this is the fact that the said tip is free to turn due to glancing blows and the natural tendency in use to loosen rather than to tighten.

ln providing a minimum of recesses in al ferrule necessarily limited in length, so as not to include too much metal, such recesses can be made very deep. In consequence a very strong and firm interlock is provided between the leather and the protruding fianges which could not possibly be afforded by the screw threads or a large number of small recesses as usually employed.

rlhe combination in a billiard cue of its shaft or stick, a ferrule secured thereon and provided with a wall portion to receive the end of said shaft or stick, the sides of said ferrule projecting beyond the said wall portion and creating a recess, said sides having two inwardly projecting annular flanges on their inner surfaces overhanging said wall portion, one of said flanges lying at the outer extremity of the ferrule, the other be ing widely separated therefrom and near the bottom of the recess, the distance of separation between the innermost parts of the fianges being greater than the width of the first named flange, said first named flange having a fiat under-surface lying in a plane substantially perpendicular to the sides of the ferrule, the other said flange having its upper wall inclined upward and terminatin rst said angej its under surface being inclined downwardly to meet the said wall of the ferlule substantially at its place of connecton with the sides of the ferrule, and a tip of pliable material to lie in the recess and conform to the contour of the inner surfaces of the sides of said ferrule.

at the base of and beneath the In testimony whereof we aiix ourl signatures, in presence of two witnesses.

FRED E. CCOPER. HARRY W. TANEYHILL. GEORGE K. PAGE. Witnesses:

L. M. THURLOW, E. J. ABERsoL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. l 

